News Release

The U.S. Senate yesterday confirmed the appointment of Franklin Kramer to be
the next Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs.

Mr. Kramer has been serving as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for
European and NATO Affairs since Jan. 31, 1996. President Clinton nominated him
for the position of assistant secretary on Feb. 6, 1996.

Prior to assuming his European and NATO Affairs post, Mr. Kramer was a partner
with the Washington, D.C. law firm of Shea and Gardner. He has also served as
the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security
Affairs from 1979 to 1981, and as Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary
of Defense for International Security Affairs from 1977 to 1979.

Mr. Kramer received a B.A. cum laude from Yale University in 1967 and a J.D.
magna cum laude from Harvard Law School in 1971. He has served as president of
the World Affairs Council of Washington, D.C. and has also served on the
advisory board for the Center for National Policy, as well as the Technical
Advisory Committee for the Center for Naval Analyses' Strategic Policy Analysis
Group. He is currently a member of the International Institute for Strategic
Studies and a principal of the Council for Excellence in Government.

Mr. Kramer and his wife Noel have a daughter, Katherine, and a son,
Christopher.